Tomorrow Never Dies (1997)

20130831:
Honestly, I don't remember anything about the film's plot, but I do remember two of the escape sequences.

Bond seduces Paris Carver, an ex-girlfriend and wife to Elliot Carver (antagonist).

The first escape sequence involves a BMW 750i which Bond can steer with a remote control. He leaves it in a parking garage and when he returns, he finds several men around his car trying to break in. Using the remote control, Bond starts the car and drives it over to himself, hopping into the back seat and proceeds to escape, steering from the backseat with his remote control.

Bond and Wai Lin make a daring escape while handcuffed.

The second escape sequence has Bond and Wai Lin (Michelle Yeoh) escaping together while handcuffed. They first slide down a building and later get on a motorcycle. While on the motorcycle, still handcuffed, occasionally Wai Lin shifts herself from sitting behind Bond to sitting on Bond's lap in order to shoot at pursuers behind them.

Still handcuffed, they continue their escape on motorcycle.

Overall, any Bond fan would probably enjoy this movie. It begins hard for me to tell them apart, as most all the Bond movies start to feel the same, especially watching them in close succession.

[Part of Movies: James Bond]
[20131005]

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Instant Comments:
Ahahahaha. "Backseat driver."

"M, you have 48 hours to investigate." Haha. I was just reading about certain tropes and the last trope I stopped at was the "You Have 48 Hours" trope.
"You'll just have to decide how much pumping is needed."
Hehe, Q fumbles with controlling the car remotely, but it's second nature to Bond. "Grow up, 007."

"Grow up, 007"

Lol. They couldn't shoot the window open when trying to get the object they were after, but they successfully break it during the getaway scene.
Ha! The car crash lands at Avis.
References Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back: The news title reads "THE EMPIRE WILL STRIKE BACK."

I thought I saw this movie, until an hour and a half in, I realized I hadn't seen it before. [20130901: Apparently my mistake was in thinking there were three Bond movies starring Brosnan (there are four).]
I really like the escape with Brosnan and Yeoh handcuffed together.
What is it with movie villains wanting to use helicopter blades to kill? See Mission: Impossible (1996).

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Watched 20130831 (Netflix, Instant, HD) (Streaming Until 20130902)
Tomorrow Never Dies (1997) Roger Spottiswoode. 119 min

Bond takes an enemy hostage.

Relevant Links:
Tomorrow Never Dies (IMDb.com)
Tomorrow Never Dies (Wikipedia.org)
Tomorrow Never Dies (RottenTomatoes.com)

GoldenEye (1995)

Seen bits and pieces once before.
Watched 20130831 (Netflix, Instant, HD) (Streaming Until 20130902)
Watched 1st half 20160103 (Television)
GoldenEye (1995) Martin Campbell. 130 min

James Bond (Pierce Brosnan)

Relevant Links:
GoldenEye (IMDb.com)
GoldenEye (RottenTomatoes.com)
GoldenEye (Wikipedia.org)

20130831:
Worried I might not be able to finish all the James Bond movies on Netflix before they were removed, I decided to skip to watching GoldenEye.

This movie is the first Bond movie featuring Pierce Brosnan as James Bond and Judi Dench as M.

M (Judi Dench)

The gun barrel opening was also fancier than in previous movies: computer graphics were used to create changes in light reflecting off the interior of the metallic surface as the barrel moved towards the center of the screen.

In any case, the film was more or less an average Bond movie with a deal more action.

Boris Grishenko and Natalya Simonova

[Part of Movies: James Bond]

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Instant Comments:
Hehe. A lot of sexual innuendos back and forth after the card game.
Onatopp.
"I prefer bourbon."
Ha. Good one. "Don't touch that!" Grabs the sandwich back. "That's my lunch."

Opening credits.

Turned on, the woman sexually says, "He's going to derail us."
Lol. I like how she didn't think of the answer due to her friendship with Boris. "It's what I sit on but I don't take it with me." Anybody would probably get the answer correct. Personally it was my first guess when hearing it the first time. Of course, I proceeded to be confused.

Bond and Simonova

Huh, I know I haven't seen this movie, but I've seen the end, starting from where Boris repeatedly clicks the pen as he's trying to break the code.
"Maybe you two would like to finish debriefing each other in Guantanamo."
The credits only end with "James Bond will return." as opposed to stating a clear follow-up.

James Bond will return.

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20160103:
There was a James Bond marathon running on television and I watched the first half of this film; I stopped to watch Inside Out with my family.

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Instant Comments:
Oh, I recently saw Sean Bean in National Treasure (2004).
"Straight up, with a twist."
"You sit on it, but you can't take it with you." (five letters)
"As far as I can remember, James, you've never had me."
"Don't touch that! That's my lunch."
[Stopped watching at when Boris meets up with Natalya]

Octopussy (1983)

Watched 20130831 (Netflix, Instant) (Streaming Until 20130902)
Octopussy (1983) John Glen. 131 min

James Bond

Relevant Links:
Octopussy (IMDb.com)
Octopussy and The Living Daylights (Wikipedia.org)
Octopussy (Wikipedia.org)
Octopussy (RottenTomatoes.com)

Kamal Khan

20130831:
Yesterday I watched Hotel Rwanda (2004), which is a dramatically heavier movie than any film in the James Bond series. With that small relief, here I am watching more James Bond.

So far Octopussy is my favorite Bond movie. Hopefully the films just keep getting better over the years.

M

[Part of Movies: James Bond]

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Instant Comments:
"Toro? Sounds like a load of bull."
Haha. That's clever. "Vijay, we've got company." "No problem, this is a company car."
"Having problems keeping it up, Q?"
"Englishman. Likes eggs, preferably Faberge, and dice, preferably loaded."
Credits say the next Bond movie is A View to a Kill.

Hotel Rwanda (2004)

Watched 20130831 (Netflix, Instant, HD) (Streaming until 20130901)
Hotel Rwanda (2004) Terry George. 121 min

Paul Rusesabagina (Don Cheadle)

Relevant Links:
Hotel Rwanda (IMDb.com)
Hotel Rwanda (Wikipedia.org)
Hotel Rwanda (RottenTomatoes.com)
Rwandan Genocide (Wikipedia.org)

The Hutu round up and plan to kill a group of Tutsis. Among them is Paul's wife Tatiana (Sophie Okonedo)

20130831:
I've seen parts of this movie two or three times before, but I've never seen the movie in full. While the parts I had seen were emotionally touching, I neither understood who the protagonist was protecting, nor why he needed to protect them. After seeing the entire movie, I learned that the hotel manager (Don Cheadle) was providing refuge to the Tutsis and protecting them from the Hutu extremists.

Jack Daglish (Joaquin Phoenix)

The movie had a good flow to it. It also did a great job of capturing various emotions and creating tense moments. In addition, I enjoyed the movie's soundtrack.

In conclusion, if you enjoy dramas like Schindler's List (1993), I would highly recommend you watch Hotel Rwanda.

Paul encounters a gut-wrenching sight.
The movie Life is Beautiful (1997) had a similar scene.

[20131001]

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Instant Comments:
"They could be twins." Simple, but powerful words, as far as an outsider's words can be.
I think Google learned based on my recent searches, because I typed "I think if people" and it finished with the quote I was looking for: "I think if people see this footage, they'll say 'Oh, my God, that's horrible.' And then they'll go on eating their dinners."

At 55 minutes, they play the track with the children singing, which is soothing in contrast with the sad imagery.

Ni dyar'izuba, Rizagaruka, Hejuru yacu,
Ni nduzaricyeza ricyeza.
[When will the sun return above us?]
[Who will reveal it once again to us?]

Colonel Oliver (Nick Nolte) speaking with General Augustin Bizimungu (Fana Mokoena)

Moonraker (1979)

Watched 20130830 (Netflix, Instant, HD) (Streaming until 20130902)
Watched half 20130103 (Television)
Moonraker (1979) Lewis Gilbert. 126 min [botnotsn (1955) by Ian Fleming]

James Bond and Holly Goodhead

Relevant Links:
Moonraker (IMDb.com)
Moonraker (novel) (Wikipedia.org)
Moonraker (film) (Wikipedia.org)
James Bond and Moonraker (Wikipedia.org)
Moonraker (RottenTomatoes.com)

Hugo Drax

20130830:
I had realized, after completing For Your Eyes Only, that I had skipped Moonraker. This mistake, however, was due to the end credits of The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) which states that the next Bond movie is For Your Eyes Only (1981).*

Bond and Goodhead

This movie was much funnier than any other Bond movie I've seen. As such, it was fresh and different, but perhaps detracted from what makes a Bond movie worth watching. In terms of being funnier, it's a small step in the direction of the Austin Powers films.

*According to Wikipedia, the reason for this change was due to the popularity of Star Wars (1977), so For Your Eyes Only was pushed back for Moonraker.

[Part of Movies: James Bond]

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Instant Comments:
Hehe. "He's on his last leg, Sir."
Now this skydiving opening is cool.

Jaws

I'm a little iffy on this line: "I don't know what happened? Something must have gone wrong with the controls." I suppose she tends to think happy thoughts over negative thoughts and perhaps its only obvious to the viewer that there is foul play involved.
"You missed Mr. Bond." "Did I?"
Ha! The most comedic scene I've seen in the Bond movies thus far! (boat chase in Venice) It ends with a nod to the hat tossing that Bond does.

Dolly is happy to see Jaws.

Are there any advantages to trying to kill someone with a shinai?
References Casablanca (1942): "Play it again, Sam." It should be noted, however, this is a misquotation and the relevant lines are "Play it once, Sam, for old times' sake." and "Play it, Sam. Play 'As Time Goes By.'"
Huh, so this is Jaws... which was the same bad guy from one from The Spy Who Loved Me (1977). I don't remember if they showed Jaws surviving or not.

Bond fights a python.

"I discovered he had a crush on me."
They simulate the look of zero-gravity by moving slowly. But oddly, in the next scene, they display an ability to make it look like the spaceman are floating in space.
"Well, here's to us."
His girlfriend never speaks in the film, but she isn't mute, as we see her whisper to him.
"I think he's attempting re-entry, Sir."

In possibly the funniest scene in any Bond movie, 007 rides a gondola/hovercraft through Piazza San Marco (St. Mark's Square in Venice, Italy)

Credits:
Due to pushing back the release of For Your Eyes Only, this film lists For Your Eyes Only (1981) in the end credits as the next Bond movie.

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I was fortunate enough to walk through Piazza San Marco (Wikipedia.org) during my trip to Europe last May. Having rained heavily during the morning, the square was flooded and water slowly drained out of the square through drains placed throughout. Perhaps Bond's gondola ride on land would have been less strange in such a situation.

After coming in from the Venice lagoon and through the Piazzetta, Bond enters the Piazza San Marco and passes by the west facade of Basilica di San Marco (above) before making a left.

That brings Bond to pass by the Procuratie Vecchie (seen on the right). In this picture, the square has a good layer of rainwater.

Finally, many pigeons occupy the square and at one point, the scene cuts to many pigeons flying up into the air, presumably startled by the gondola.

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20160103:
After watching Inside Out (2015) with my family, I returned to the James Bond marathon on television and the current film was Moonraker.

Instant Comments:
The password sounds out the tune from Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)
Everybody walks through the metal detector.
[one of the last scenes I remember was Bond brings his superiors to check out the lab, but it's gone]
[oh wait, I think the last I saw was Bond making out with the CIA agent]

For Your Eyes Only (1981)

Watched 20130830 (Netflix, Instant, HD) (Streaming until 20130902)
For Your Eyes Only (1981) John Glen. 127 min [bot short stories For Your Eyes Only and Risico (1960) by Ian Fleming]

James Bond and Melina Havelock

Relevant Links:
For Your Eyes Only (IMDb.com)
For Your Eyes Only (short story collection) (Wikipedia.org)
For Your Eyes Only (film) (Wikipedia.org)
For Your Eyes Only (song) (Wikipedia.org)
For Your Eyes Only (RottenTomatoes.com)

Bibi Dahl (right) and her trainer (left).

20130830:
While the end credits of The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) states James Bond will return in For Your Eyes Only, this movie was pushed back for Moonraker due to the popularity of Star Wars. Because of the credits, I assumed that For Your Eyes Only was the next movie released after The Spy Who Loved Me, and so I watched it before Moonraker.

In any case, this movie had some good bits and some bad bits. My favorite scene in the movie was when James Bond and the character Melina Havelock are bound together and dragged by a boat. In contrast, I disliked the part in the movie where the guard tries to stop Bond's advancement up the mountain by removing gear instead of outright cutting the rope.

I stand neutral on whether or not I would recommend the movie.

Opening credits.

[Part of James Bond]
[20130929][20181201 Edit]

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Instant Comments:
Teresa Bond? Oh, Tracy "Teresa" Bond.
"Him? He thinks I'm still a virgin." "Yes, well you get your clothes on... and I'll buy you an ice cream."
"That's why I'll get the gold medal. Breath control."

Bibi absolutely loves Bond

There is such a stark contrast to how woman are portrayed in these old James Bond movies and how woman are portrayed in modern movies (say movies from 2000 to 2013). In fact, it can be difficult to watch how incompetent some of these Bond girls can be.
Hehehe. Great scene (being dragged by the boat and the corresponding escape). Perhaps one of my favorite Bond escapes in what I've seen so far. On the other hand, the ski escapes are among my least favorites.

Opening scene.

Lol: this guy is working too hard. He could have just cut the rope instead of breaking each placement. In fact, what was he planning to do anyways? Lower himself down the entire route along with Bond?
A cool thing with watching the Bond movies in order is watching the growth and change of the movie credits, getting longer and longer as the years go by.
"James Bond will return in Octopussy"

James Bond will return in Octopussy

The Spy Who Loved Me (1977)

Watched 20130830 (Netflix, Instant, HD) (Streaming until 20130902)
Watched 2nd half 20160103 (Television)
The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) Lewis Gilbert. 125 min [title taken from tnotsn (1962) by Ian Fleming]

Relevant Links:
The Spy Who Loved Me (IMDb.com)
The Spy Who Loved Me (novel) (Wikipedia.org)
The Spy Who Loved Me (film) (Wikipedia.org)
James Bond, The Spy Who Loved Me (Wikipedia.org)
The Spy Who Loved Me (RottenTomatoes.com)

Major Anya Amasova (Agent XXX) (Barbara Bach) and James Bond (Roger Moore).

20130830:
Despite watching Titan A.E. and The Wild Thornberrys Movie last night while blogging, I wasn't quite ready to give my full attention to a James Bond movie and watched the first half of this movie in the background while playing League of Legends.

At some point, I realized that Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me got its name as a play on the title of this movie, "The Spy Who Loved Me."

The villain Karl Stromberg (Curt Jurgens) 

While I didn't see a portion of the movie, I would definitely watch the movie again for the henchman Jaws. Jaws, like Oddjob in Goldfinger (1964), is a popular henchman in the James Bond series. Jaws, however, makes a return in Moonraker (1979).

The movie's main Bond girl, Anya Amasova, is also a good reason to watch this movie. In contrast with most Bond girls, the character is smarter, tougher, and, in general, capable of taking care of herself.

The movie also features one of the cooler vehicles in the Bond series: a Lotus Esprit which can convert into a submarine.

Overall, unless you're looking for Roger Moore's funniest Bond film (Moonraker), then you should check out The Spy Who Loved Me, as it might be his best Bond film.

Bond and Amasova take a plunge in a Lotus Esprit.

[Part of Movies: James Bond]
[20130918]

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Instant Comments:
Lol: electrifying the metallic teeth is smart thinking
Subtly referencing the girl as opposed to the boat she's walking towards, Bond says "What a handsome craft. What lovely lines."
Hehe. "One tries."
Lol. Yeah, if sludge hits your front window, then you should definitely swerve wildly, because that's bound to remedy the situation in a positive way.

No problem, it converts into a submarine.

That's awesome. "Can you swim?"
Ha. Smart. Put a window at the top of your secret research area so people can see what you're up to.
"How did you know about that?" "I stole the blueprints of this car two years ago."
Hehe. The munitions room was fully stocked. And yet the enemy seems fairly well stocked.

Jaws gets dunked, but who's the real threat here?

Lol. They're looking at a map of the globe which shows the position of the submarines. Then when the missiles are fired, they're supposed position is also shown. However, they are shown as traveling in an upward arch, as if they curved up towards the north pole and back down, barely missing each other. Now the missiles are being launched into the air, but their position should be the projection onto the flat globe. The scene is visually informative, but unrealistic.

M: 007!
General: Triple X!
Minister of Defence: Bond! What do you think you're doing?

Hehe. Jaws.
"Keeping the British end up, Sir."
James Bond will return in For Your Eyes Only. [20130918: For Your Eyes Only (1981) was actually pushed back for the space-themed Moonraker (1979), due to the success of Star Wars (1977).]

Bond and Anya in the escape pod. "Keeping the British end up, Sir."

20160103:
I was flipping through the channels and stumbled upon this movie on television (KTLA 5.3). I dropped into the film at the point where Bond (Roger Moore) and Amasova (Barbara Bach) are fleeing from a helicopter. Eventually Bond loses the copter by diving into the ocean, "Can you swim?"

Next in the channel's James Bond marathon was GoldenEye (1995).